ESPN announced Tuesday that Kendrick Lamar will perform at the inaugural half time show at the College Football National Championship game on January 8, 2018. The performance will be a free, non-ticket event held at Atlanta’s Centennial Olympic Park, just outside Mercedes-Benz Stadium, and broadcast nationally on ESPN. A press release stated that Lamar will perform a medley of his hits, including songs from Spin’s best album of 2017, DAMN.
“Having the opportunity to perform at halftime of what will surely be the best game of the year between two deserving universities is truly an honor,” Lamar said in a statement. “Thank you, ESPN, for having me be the first halftime performer ever at the College Football Playoff National Championship.”
Previously, a report from Entertainment Tonight citing an unnamed source had Taylor Swift in talks to play the halftime show, as part of a “massive deal to release new music from Reputation through its college football coverage this season.” While Swift did release a snippet of the album’s second single “…Ready For It?” during an Alabama/Florida State game in September, ESPN called the report “inaccurate.”
Hope there’s no bad blood.
